Printer

Abstract

This printer includes a body, a cover, a conveyance unit, a printing unit, a pressing member, a link arm, and a regulating member. The body includes a storage unit for storing a roll, which is a long print medium wound into a roll. The cover opens and closes the storage unit. The conveyance unit draws the print medium from the roll and feeds the medium to the outside of the body. The printing unit prints information on the print medium drawn from the roll by the conveyance unit. The pressing member is rotatably attached to the cover via a first rotation shaft, and presses the roll against the inner surface of the storage unit. The link arm is rotatably attached to the body via a second rotation shaft parallel to the first rotation shaft, and includes a slider slidably inserted into a long hole in the pressing member. The regulating member is attached to the slider and regulates the movement of the roll in the drawing direction of the print medium.

Description

printer

[0001] An embodiment of the present invention relates to a printer that prints information on a long print medium wound in a roll, for example.

[0002] For example, the labels affixed to food packaging in supermarkets have an adhesive applied to the opposite side to the printed side, and are distributed in rolls with the labels lined up and affixed to long strips of release paper. There are also environmentally friendly label rolls available, in which the printed side of long, linerless labels without release paper is treated with a release agent and rolled up.

[0003] Some printers that print information on linerless labels without release paper use a so-called drop-in system, which allows label rolls to be loaded simply by opening the cover and dropping the label into the hopper on the main body, making label roll replacement easier.

[0004] Drop-in printers do not have a shaft to rotatably support the label roll, so the label roll tends to move around inside the hopper when the linerless labels are pulled out of the roll. To prevent this movement, some printers are equipped with a flapper that presses the label roll against the inner wall of the hopper.

[0005] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2022-135695

[0006] When a label roll of linerless labels is loaded into the conventional printer described above, gravity will cause the label roll to sit at the bottom of the hopper if the roll diameter is large, but as the roll diameter becomes smaller and lighter, the label roll will tend to move in the direction in which the linerless labels are pulled out. For example, if a label roll wrapped around linerless labels coated with a weak adhesive that allows them to be removably attached to the surface to which they are attached is loaded, after the pulling of the linerless labels stops, the label roll will fall to the bottom of the hopper while rotating under its own weight.

[0007] When the label roll moves inside the hopper in this way, it hits the bottom of the hopper or the inside of the cover, causing the printer to vibrate. This can cause the print head to vibrate or the linerless label to be misaligned, resulting in poor printing.

[0008] The problem to be solved by the embodiments of the present invention is to provide a printer capable of high-quality printing.

[0009] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a printer according to one embodiment. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the printer of FIG. 1 with the cover open. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the cover side of the printer of FIG. 2 and the paper guide on the main body side. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the main part of FIG. 3 as seen from the cover side. FIG. 5 is a partial enlarged view for explaining the link mechanism of FIG. 3. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a state in which the diameter of the label roll inserted into the printer of FIG. 1 has become smaller. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing the label roll of FIG. 6 having moved in the label pull-out direction. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing the label roll of FIG. 6 having moved to the bottom of the hopper. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing the label roll of FIG. 8 having become smaller and exceeded the tip of the flapper. FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing the main part of a printer according to a modified example. Embodiment

[0010] In one embodiment, the printer has a main body, a cover, a transport unit, a printing unit, a pressing member, a link arm, and a regulating member. The main body has a storage unit that stores a roll of long print media wound in a roll shape. The cover opens and closes the storage unit. The transport unit pulls the print media from the roll and sends it out of the main body. The printing unit prints information on the print media pulled from the roll by the transport unit. The pressing member is rotatably attached to the cover via a first rotation shaft and presses the roll against the inner surface of the storage unit. The link arm is rotatably attached to the main body via a second rotation shaft parallel to the first rotation shaft and includes a slider that is slidably inserted into an elongated hole in the pressing member. The regulating member is attached to the slider and regulates movement of the roll in the direction in which the print media is pulled out.

[0011] Hereinafter, an embodiment and its modifications will be described with reference to the drawings. In the embodiment and its modifications, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted.

[0012] 1, a printer 100 according to one embodiment includes a main body 10 having a hopper 2 therein capable of accommodating a label roll R, and a cover 20 that opens and closes the hopper 2. The hopper 2 is an example of a storage unit that rotatably accommodates the label roll R. The printer 100 has a conveyance path T that connects the hopper 2 between the main body 10 and the cover 20. The printer 100 has an outlet 1 for discharging labels at the downstream end of the conveyance path T, spaced apart from the hopper 2.

[0013] The label roll R is an example of a roll to be fed into the printer 100, and is a roll of long, strip-shaped linerless labels L without release paper. The linerless labels L are an example of a print medium, and have a printing surface that forms the outside of the roll. An adhesive is provided on the surface opposite the printing surface. The printing surface is treated with a release treatment for the adhesive. The adhesive may be weakly adhesive, resulting in a removable linerless label. The label roll R is not limited to a roll of linerless labels L, but may also be a roll of multiple labels lined up and attached to a long piece of release paper.

[0014] The label roll R is loaded into the hopper 2 in the orientation shown in Figure 1. Therefore, when the linerless labels L are pulled out from the label roll R, the label roll R rotates counterclockwise in Figure 1. The printer 100 has a cutter 9 near the discharge outlet 1, which divides the linerless labels L into multiple labels and discharges them through the discharge outlet 1.

[0015] The printer 100 can be used in a vertically placed position as shown in Fig. 1. With the printer 100 placed in this position, the left side of the hopper 2 of the main body 10 is open in the figure, and a cover 20 is located on the left side in the figure, covering the open side of the hopper 2. Therefore, when the cover 20 of the vertically placed printer 100 is rotated around a rotation shaft 21 (described later) to the open position shown in Fig. 2, the left side of the hopper 2 in the figure opens wide, and the cover 20 assumes a position approximately parallel to the surface on which the printer 100 is placed.

[0016] In the following description, when the printer 100 is installed vertically as shown in Figure 1, the open side of the hopper 2, i.e., the side of the cover 20 placed in the closed position, is referred to as the front, and the front-to-back, up-down, and left-to-right directions are defined when viewing the printer 100 from the front. In each figure, the direction from left to right is indicated by arrow X, the direction from back to front is indicated by arrow Y, and the direction from bottom to top is indicated by arrow Z.

[0017] The printer 100 can also be used in a horizontal position (not shown). In this case, the rear surface 11 of the main body 10 is in contact with the installation surface, and the front surface of the cover 20 faces upward. When the printer 100 is placed horizontally, the direction of gravity acting on the label roll R and each component of the printer 100 is 90 degrees different from when the printer is placed vertically, but the printer 100 operates without any problems, just like when placed vertically. Therefore, the following description will be based on the case where the printer 100 is placed vertically.

[0018] When loading the label roll R into the printer 100, the cover 20 is opened to the open position, which opens the hopper 2, as shown in Figure 2, and the label roll R is inserted in a predetermined orientation from the front of the hopper 2. Then, the linerless labels L are pulled out from the label roll R and led out of the hopper 2 to the main body 10, and the cover 20 is rotated to the closed position, which closes the hopper 2. This leaves the leading edge of the linerless labels L led out of the discharge outlet 1, as shown in Figure 1, and printing on the linerless labels L becomes possible.

[0019] The printer 100 of this embodiment employs a so-called drop-in method in which the label roll R is loaded into the main body 10 simply by inserting the label roll R into the hopper 2. Therefore, there is no shaft in the hopper 2 that rotatably supports the label roll R, and the label roll R is movable within the hopper 2.

[0020] The printer 100 has a print head 4 that functions as a printing unit that prints information on linerless labels L, located on the main body 10 side of the transport path T near the discharge outlet 1. The printer 100 has a platen roller 6 that rotates while pressing the linerless labels L against the print head 4, located on the cover 20 side facing the print head 4 across the transport path T. The platen roller 6 is driven by a motor (not shown) connected via a drive transmission mechanism (not shown). The platen roller 6 is a component attached to the cover 20, and functions as a transport unit that pulls out the linerless labels L from the label roll R and sends them out through the discharge outlet 1.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 3 , the cover 20 is integrally provided with two pivot shafts 21 extending in the left-right direction. The cover 20 is also provided with a pair of left and right protrusions 22 integrally protruding rearward from near the bottom end of the cover 20 in the figure. For example, the right protrusion 22 is plate-shaped and substantially parallel to the YZ plane, with the pivot shaft 21 protruding rightward from its right side. The left protrusion 22 is shaped symmetrically to the right protrusion 22 and has the pivot shaft 21 integrally protruding leftward from its left side. The two pivot shafts 21 are coaxially arranged. Only the right pivot shaft 21 is shown in FIG. 3 ; the left pivot shaft 21 is not visible. These two pivot shafts 21 function as a third pivot shaft that rotatably connects the bottom end 201 of the cover 20 to the main body 10. The cover 20 is rotatable about the two pivot shafts 21 relative to the main body 10 between the closed position shown in FIG. 1 and the open position shown in FIG. 2 . The main body 10 has bearings (not shown) that rotatably receive the two rotation shafts 21 of the cover 20 .

[0022] The main body 10 includes a paper guide 12 located below the hopper 2. The paper guide 12 is attached to the main body 10 by two left and right fixing claws 13, 14 protruding from its rear. The main body 10 has a flat bottom surface 15 that contacts the installation surface S when the printer 100 is placed vertically. The bottom surface of the paper guide 12 on the hopper 2 side forms part of the inner surface of the hopper 2. The paper guide 12 has a bearing hole 16 (FIG. 4) near its front end for rotatably receiving a rotation shaft 33 of a link arm 34 (described later).

[0023] As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 , the printer 100 includes a flapper 32 attached to the cover 20, a link arm 34 attached to the paper guide 12 of the main body 10, and a retaining arm 36. The printer 100 includes a pivot shaft 31 that pivots the base end (upper end in the figure) of the flapper 32 relative to the cover 20. The printer 100 includes the pivot shaft 33 that pivots the base end (lower end in the figure) of the link arm 34 relative to the main body 10. The flapper 32 includes a slot 321 in a longitudinally intermediate portion away from the pivot shaft 31 that slidably receives the slide shaft 30. The link arm 34 includes a slide shaft 30 that is inserted through the slot 321 at its tip (upper end in the figure) opposite the pivot shaft 33. The retaining arm 36 is attached to the slide shaft 30 so that it can freely rotate.

[0024] The rotation shaft 31 of the flapper 32 extends in the left-right direction and functions as a first rotation shaft. A coil spring (not shown) is attached to the rotation shaft 31, which urges the flapper 32 counterclockwise in FIG. 3. The flapper 32 functions as a pressing member that presses the label roll R against the inner surface of the hopper 2 by rotating counterclockwise in FIG. 3. The rotation shaft 33 of the link arm 34 extends parallel to the rotation shaft 31 and functions as a second rotation shaft. The slide shaft 30 extends parallel to the rotation shafts 31 and 33 and functions as a slider that is inserted into the elongated hole 321 of the flapper 32. The retaining arm 36 attached to the slide shaft 30 functions as a restricting member that restricts the movement of the label roll R in the direction in which the linerless labels L are pulled out.

[0025] The flapper 32 has two parallel legs 322, 323 spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction. Each of the two legs 322, 323 has a bearing hole 325 at its base end for rotation, which rotatably receives the rotation shaft 31. In Fig. 3, only the bearing hole 325 of the right leg 323 is shown, and the bearing hole 325 of the left leg 323 is not shown. These two bearing holes 325 are arranged coaxially and spaced apart from each other in the left-right direction, as shown in Fig. 4.

[0026] The two legs 322, 323 each have an elongated hole 321 through which the slide shaft 30 passes. The two elongated holes 321 have symmetrical shapes. The two elongated holes 321 are located along the longitudinal direction of the flapper 32, away from the bearing hole 325 toward the tip end of the rotation. The two elongated holes 321 extend in the longitudinal direction of the flapper 32.

[0027] The flapper 32 has a substantially rectangular opening 324 between the two legs 322, 323 at a position spaced apart from the bearing hole 325. The opening 324 is located between the two elongated holes 321. The holding arm 36 is attached to the slide shaft 30 via the opening 324 of the flapper 32. The flapper 32 has a locking portion 326 against which a part of the holding arm 36 abuts on the edge of the opening 324 on the side farther from the bearing hole 325, preventing the holding arm 36 from rotating further.

[0028] The flapper 32 has a substantially rectangular pressing plate portion 328 with a flat pressing surface 327 in the shape of a rectangular frame that comes into contact with the label roll R at the tip end of its rotation. The pressing surface 327 of the pressing plate portion 328 is a flat surface that faces the hopper 2 of the main body 10. The flapper 32 rotates counterclockwise in FIG. 3 by the biasing force of a coil spring provided on the rotating shaft 31, and presses the pressing surface 327 of the pressing plate portion 328 against the outer circumferential surface of the label roll R stored in the hopper 2. As a result, the outer circumferential surface on the opposite side of the label roll R is pressed against the inner surface of the hopper 2 on the opposite side to the flapper 32, thereby suppressing flapping of the label roll R.

[0029] The link arm 34 integrally includes a left frame 341, a right frame 342, a connecting frame 343, and an intermediate frame 344. The left frame 341 and the right frame 342 have symmetrical shapes, are spaced apart from each other, and are parallel to each other. The connecting frame 343 extends in the left-right direction and connects the base end of the rotation of the left frame 341 to the base end of the rotation of the right frame 342. The intermediate frame 344 extends parallel to and spaced apart from the connecting frame 343, and integrally connects the middle portion of the left frame 341 to the middle portion of the right frame 342.

[0030] The left frame 341 and the right frame 342 each have a bearing hole 345 at their respective rotational ends separated from the connecting frame 343 to rotatably receive the slide shaft 30. The link arm 34 has two coaxial bearing holes 345. The left rotation shaft 33 of the link arm 34 protrudes leftward from the left side surface of the left frame 341 near the base end of the left frame 341. The right rotation shaft 33 of the link arm 34 protrudes rightward from the right side surface of the right frame 342 near the base end of the right frame 342.

[0031] A link mechanism is formed by inserting the slide shaft 30 through two elongated holes 321 in the flapper 32 and two bearing holes 345 in the link arm 34. The flapper 32 is biased in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 3 by a coil spring provided on the rotary shaft 31, and this biasing force is transmitted to the link arm 34 via the slide shaft 30 and the elongated holes 321. The link mechanism limits the swing range of the flapper 32.

[0032] The presser arm 36 is formed in the shape of a substantially rectangular plate that is slightly curved along the outer periphery of the label roll R, and has a connecting portion 361 integral with its base end for rotation that is rotatably connected to the slide shaft 30. The connecting portion 361 has a structure that allows it to be connected to the slide shaft 30 from the pressing surface 327 side of the flapper 32 through the opening 324 of the flapper 32. The presser arm 36 is freely rotatable relative to the slide shaft 30. The inside of the curve of the presser arm 36 faces the pressing surface 327 of the pressing plate portion 328 of the flapper 32. Figure 3 shows a state in which the clockwise rotation of the presser arm 36 due to its own weight has been stopped by the locking portion 326 of the flapper 32.

[0033] 5 , the pivot shaft 21 protruding outward from the protrusion 22 near the lower end of the cover 20 is positioned slightly above the pivot shaft 33 of the link arm 34 that is inserted into the bearing hole 16 provided near the front end of the paper guide 12 of the main body 10. In addition, a lower end 346 of the link arm 34 on the opposite side of the slide shaft 30 with respect to the pivot shaft 33 has a pressed surface 347 that faces closely to the inner surface 202 of the lower end 201 of the cover 20, which is spaced apart from the pivot shaft 21. The lower end 346 of the link arm 34 functions as a protruding portion that is pressed by the inner surface 202 of the cover 20, and the inner surface 202 near the lower end 201 of the cover 20 functions as a pressing portion that presses the pressed surface 347 of the lower end 346 of the link arm 34.

[0034] When the cover 20, which is disposed in the closed position shown in Fig. 1, is rotated counterclockwise about the rotation shaft 21 toward the open position shown in Fig. 2, the lower end 201 of the cover 20 rotates counterclockwise about the rotation shaft 21 in Fig. 5. Then, the inner surface 202 near the lower end 201 of the cover 20 presses the pressed surface 347 of the lower end 346 of the link arm 34. As a result, the link arm 34 rotates counterclockwise about the rotation shaft 33 against the biasing force of the coil spring provided on the rotation shaft 31 of the flapper 32, and is stored in a state approaching the inner surface of the cover 20 as shown in Fig. 2. At this time, the link mechanism rotates the flapper 32 clockwise about the rotation shaft 31 and stores it inside the cover 20, making it easier to feed the label roll R into the hopper 2 (Fig. 2).

[0035] When the cover 20 is rotated clockwise about the rotation shaft 21 from the open position shown in Fig. 2 to the closed position shown in Fig. 1, the lower end 201 of the cover 20 rotates clockwise about the rotation shaft 21 away from the pressed surface 347 of the link arm 34, and the urging force of the coil spring causes the flapper 32 to rotate counterclockwise about the rotation shaft 31. At this time, the link arm 34 rotates clockwise about the rotation shaft 33. This state is shown in Fig. 3.

[0036] 1, after the cover 20 is opened and an unused label roll R is placed into the hopper 2, the flapper 32 is biased counterclockwise by the coil spring, and the pressing surface 327 of the flapper 32 presses the outer circumferential surface of the label roll R. In this state, the pressing arm 36 attached to the slide shaft 30 comes into contact with the outer circumferential surface of the label roll R due to its own weight. Immediately after the unused label roll R is placed into the hopper 2, the outer circumferential surface of the label roll R is in contact with the multiple guide rolls 23 provided on the inner surface of the hopper 2.

[0037] Therefore, even when the linerless labels L are pulled out from the label roll R by the rotation of the platen roller 6 and the label roll R rotates, the label roll R is less likely to move around inside the hopper 2. In other words, the label roll R is clamped between the pressing surface 327 of the flapper 32 and the inner surface on the opposite side of the hopper 2 (in this case, the outer peripheral surface of the guide roll 23), which prevents the label roll R from moving around inside the hopper 2.

[0038] Furthermore, because the pressure arm 36 is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the label roll R due to its own weight, even if the label roll R moves in the unwinding direction of the linerless labels L as the linerless labels L are unwound, the outer peripheral surface of the label roll R is prevented from colliding with the cover 20 or the main body 10. In this way, by preventing collisions of the label roll R with the pressure arm 36, undesired vibrations that occur inside the printer 100 due to collisions can be suppressed, preventing problems such as vibrations being transmitted to the print head 4. This prevents the print head 4 from vibrating, and prevents misalignment of the linerless labels L as they are fed, enabling high-quality printing.

[0039] When the diameter of the label roll R is reduced by pulling out the linerless labels L, for example, to the extent shown in Fig. 6, the label roll R can move to the position shown in Fig. 7 in the direction in which the linerless labels L are pulled out, or to the position shown in Fig. 8 in which the label roll R has moved to the bottom of the hopper 2. When a small-diameter label roll R is positioned in the intermediate position shown in Fig. 6, the flapper 32 presses the label roll R against the inner surface of the hopper 2 with the pressing surface 327, as in the case of an unused label roll R described above, and the pressing arm 36 comes into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the linerless labels L due to its own weight.

[0040] 7 as the linerless labels L are pulled out, the label roll R is pulled up to the position shown in Figure 7. The flapper 32 presses the label roll R against the inner surface of the hopper 2 with the pressing surface 327, and the retaining arm 36 restricts further upward movement of the label roll R, preventing the label roll R from colliding with components of the cover 20. This prevents vibrations caused by the label roll R colliding with the print head 4 or platen roller 6, enabling high-quality printing.

[0041] As the diameter of the label roll R further decreases as the linerless labels L are drawn out, the label roll R passes between the tip of the rotating flapper 32 and the bottom of the hopper 2, as shown in Figure 9. Once the label roll R has moved to this position, it remains in this position without passing the tip of the flapper 32 again. Therefore, the label roll R does not move upward until all the linerless labels L are used up, and does not collide with the components of the cover 20 or the frame of the main body 10. By positioning the pressure arm 36 in the path of the linerless labels L, the pressure arm 36 acts as a damper that reduces the load on the linerless labels L. Therefore, the label roll R does not move upward.

[0042] As described above, according to this embodiment, the label roll R placed in the hopper 2 is pressed against the inner surface of the hopper 2 by the flapper 32, thereby preventing the label roll R from moving around inside the hopper 2. Furthermore, because the pressing arm 36 is brought into contact with the outer surface of the label roll R by its own weight from the downstream side in the direction in which the linerless labels L are pulled out, it is possible to prevent the label roll R from colliding with components on the cover side or with the frame of the main body 10. Therefore, the printer 100 of this embodiment is capable of high-quality printing.

[0043] 10, a modified example in which a tension spring 38 is attached between the link arm 34 and the retaining arm 36 will be described. The printer according to this modified example has substantially the same structure as the printer 100 of the above-described embodiment, except for the addition of the tension spring 38. Therefore, only the differences from the above-described embodiment will be described in detail here.

[0044] The tension spring 38 is in a slightly stretched state, with one end 381 fixed to the slide shaft 30 side at the left-right center of the intermediate frame 344 of the link arm 34, and the other end 382 fixed to the connecting portion 361 of the holding arm 36. The tension spring 38 functions to hold the holding arm 36 in a position where the longitudinal direction of the link arm 34 and the longitudinal direction of the holding arm 36 are arranged in a substantially straight line. Multiple tension springs 38 may be attached.

[0045] For example, if an unused label roll R is loaded into the printer as shown in Fig. 1, and the pressure arm 36 is biased clockwise, a pressing force in a direction that places a load on the outer surface of the label roll R in the direction of rotation (counterclockwise) of the label roll R when the linerless label L is pulled out will be applied to the outer surface of the label roll R, making it difficult for the label roll R to rotate. Furthermore, if the pressure arm 36 is biased counterclockwise when the diameter of the label roll R is reduced and the label roll R is positioned as shown in Fig. 6, the tip of the rotating pressure arm 36 will always be pressed against a component on the cover 20 side, and the link arm 34 will attempt to rotate clockwise with the tip of the pressure arm 36 as a fulcrum. In this case, a force will be applied in the direction that the pressing surface 327 of the flapper 32 presses against the outer surface of the label roll R, braking the rotation of the label roll R.

[0046] Therefore, as in this modified example, it is effective to hold the pressure arm 36 in a straight line with the link arm 34, allowing the linerless label L to be properly pulled out from the label roll R, enabling high-quality printing.

[0047] Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be embodied in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are intended to be included within the scope and spirit of the invention, as well as within the scope of the invention and its equivalents as defined in the claims.

[0048] The above-described embodiment may be expressed as follows: (1) A printer comprising: a main body including a storage section that stores a roll of long print medium wound in a roll shape; a cover that opens and closes the storage section; a transport section that pulls the print medium from the roll and sends it out of the main body; a printing section that prints information on the print medium pulled from the roll by the transport section; a pressing member that is rotatably attached to the cover via a first rotation shaft and presses the roll against the inner surface of the storage section; a link arm that is rotatably attached to the main body via a second rotation shaft parallel to the first rotation shaft and has a slider that is slidably inserted into an elongated hole in the pressing member; and a regulating member that is attached to the slider and regulates movement of the roll in the direction in which the print medium is pulled out. (2) The printer described in (1), wherein the slider is a slide shaft that is parallel to the first and second rotation shafts, and the regulating member is rotatably attached to the slide shaft. (3) The printer described in (2), wherein the regulating member is capable of rotating about the slide shaft under its own weight to come into contact with the roll, and the pressing member has a locking portion that engages with the regulating member midway through the rotation of the regulating member under its own weight to prevent further rotation of the regulating member. (4) The printer described in (2), wherein a tension spring is provided between the link arm and the regulating member, between the second rotation shaft and the slide shaft. (5) The printer described in (1), wherein the cover is rotatably attached to the main body via a third rotation shaft that is spaced apart and parallel to the second rotation shaft, and has a pressing portion that presses a protruding portion of the link arm on the opposite side to the slider with respect to the second rotation shaft when the cover rotates from a closed position that closes the storage portion toward an open position that opens the storage portion, thereby rotating the link arm in a direction toward the cover.

Claims

1. A printer having: a main body provided with a storage section that stores a roll of long print media; a cover that opens and closes the storage section; a transport section that pulls the print media from the roll and sends it out of the main body; a printing section that prints information on the print media pulled from the roll by the transport section; a pressing member that is rotatably attached to the cover via a first rotation axis and presses the roll against the inner surface of the storage section; a link arm that is rotatably attached to the main body via a second rotation axis parallel to the first rotation axis and has a slider that is slidably inserted into a long hole in the pressing member; and a regulating member that is attached to the slider and regulates movement of the roll in the direction in which the print media is pulled out.

2. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the slider is a slide shaft parallel to the first and second rotation axes, and the regulating member is attached to the slide shaft so as to be rotatable relative to the slide shaft.

3. The printer according to claim 2, wherein the regulating member is capable of rotating around the slide shaft under its own weight and contacting the roll, and the pressing member has a locking portion that engages with the regulating member midway through the rotation of the regulating member under its own weight to prevent further rotation of the regulating member.

4. The printer according to claim 2, further comprising a tension spring stretched between the link arm and the regulating member between the second rotation shaft and the slide shaft.

5. The printer described in claim 1, wherein the cover is rotatably attached to the main body via a third pivot axis that is parallel to and spaced apart from the second pivot axis, and has a pressing portion that, when rotated from a closed position that closes the storage section toward an open position that opens the storage section, presses a protruding portion of the link arm on the opposite side from the slider against the second pivot axis, thereby rotating the link arm in a direction toward the cover.

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